2 Islamists shot dead in Bangladesh

Bangladesh police said on Tuesday they shot dead two members of the country’s largest Islamist party in gunfights, as a rights activist demanded an independent probe on concerns of extrajudicial killings.

Security forces have launched a major crackdown on suspected Islamist militants since jihadists raided a Dhaka cafe in July and left 22 mainly foreign hostages dead.

But the crackdown which has seen a string of suspects killed in gunbattles has sparked concerns that Opposition activists were among those targeted. Senior police officer Azbahar Ali Sheikh said a Jamaat-e- Islami party leader and a leader of its student wing were killed early on Tuesday. Top human rights activist Nur Khan Liton demanded a judicial probe into the killings.